In the snow-white ward, several people gathered around a bed.
Lying on it was a withered old man, who was at the moment of death.
He has been in a coma since he collapsed last night. The doctor told his family to come to the hospital as soon as possible as he doesn't have much time left.
Suddenly, there was a noise at the door of the ward. The middle-aged man closest to the bed leaned over and whispered in the old man's ear, "Teacher, open your eyes and look. Wu Xin is here."
Wu Xin and his family of three came to the bedside. He grabbed the old man's hand and called out, "Dad, Dad, it's me, Wu Xin. I brought Qiuhua and Fanfan to see you!"
The ticking sound of mechanical instruments rang out in the ward, as if a ceremony was being held, perhaps a farewell.
I don’t know if it was an illusion, but the old man’s cheeks suddenly flushed, his eyelids trembled slightly, and finally he opened his eyes and looked around.
"Father!"
"Father!"
Wu Xin and Qiu Hua called out.
Fanfan also came over and called out softly, "Old lady, are you sleepy? Why are you sleeping?"
"Help me up..." said Dad.
Qiuhua and Wu Xin carefully helped him up and carefully placed a pillow under his waist.
He stroked Fanfan's head lovingly and said, "Fanfan, I'm old and tired. I need to sleep."
"Will the old lady still play with me after she wakes up?"
There were twinkling stars in Fanfan's eyes, as if there were little stars in her pupils.
Dad just smiled but couldn't answer her question.
"Wu Xin, I'm going to donate all my property except that house. You won't blame me, right?"
Wu Xin grabbed his hand tightly, shook his head and said, "Dad, I don't blame you. Stop talking and take a rest."
"If I don't tell you... I won't have time... That house is your good mother-in-law's old house. Back then... I had nothing, but she was willing to marry me..."
When my father said this, his face was full of happiness, as if he had returned to his youth. The beautiful girl came out of the house, with a round face, big eyes, and a thick and long braid.
"Wu Xin, I want to thank your mother. I never had the chance to thank her properly. Our Dong family...didn't let her live a good life. Her life was so hard. I feel so sorry for your father."
Wu Xin placed his father's hand on his cheek, tears streaming down his face silently. There were thousands of words in his eyes, but he didn't know where to start, so they flowed down to the back of his hand along with the tears.
"Her own life was so difficult, but she still left you for us. You and Qiuhua brought Fanfan with you." He smiled with relief.
"Dad, don't go, don't go..." Wu Xin murmured with his shoulders trembling, "You are all so cruel, abandoning me one by one..."
"I'm old, and it's time. You have Qiuhua and Fanfan by your side now, so I feel relieved."
Dad reached out to pull Qiuhua: "Qiuhua..."
It was becoming increasingly difficult for him to speak, and Qiu Hua nodded repeatedly, saying, "Dad, don't worry, I will take good care of Wu Xin."
After he finished speaking, he nodded with satisfaction, gently closed his eyes for a long time, and said, "Help me lie down, I'm sleepy."
"Dad, Dad..." Wu Xin finally burst into tears.
Fanfan gently pulled the corner of his clothes, and a child's voice as silvery as a bell rang out: "Dad, don't cry, the old lady has fallen asleep."
It's winter again, at Erhua's home.
The New Year's Day program is being broadcast on TV.
The women were busy in the kitchen while the men were drinking tea and eating melon seeds.
The door opened and Liang Guoguo came in from outside, shaking his head. He had earphones in his ears, and a cord connected to a Walkman around his waist.
"Guoguo, come and serve the dishes--" Xiaojuan shouted in the kitchen.
"Woo~ Love comes too fast like a tornado... it's coming!" Liang Guoguo staggered all the way to the kitchen.
"Alright," Chunhua took off his headphones, "Just get to work, be serious, why are you still shaking your head?"
"Hey, aunt, you're a graduate student, well-educated, how can you be the same as mom and the others? You have to understand me, understand?"
He jokingly put the earphones into Chunhua's ears and said, "Listen, how about it? It sounds good, right?"
"It sounds so good, so good! It sounds so good! It's babble and unclear!" Chunhua smiled and patted him.
"Auntie, how can you say it's unclear? You have to listen carefully. He's singing 'Love is like a gust of wind, it blows and then it's gone. With this rhythm, I can't do anything about it...'"
"It sounds good, I heard it clearly!" Chunhua raised his hands in surrender.
"Everyone outside is here to serve the dishes—"
The men received the order and quickly got up and went to the kitchen.
Roast duck, braised pork, mutton soup, mutton cake, pig ears and pig stomach, and braised beef in soy sauce, the appearance of these main dishes shows how luxurious this meal is.
After a busy afternoon, we finally had time to sit down. The whole family sat together and the room was warm.
Erhua stood up and poured wine or drinks for everyone.
"Come on, let's raise our cups—"
"Come!"
"Come!"
"Erhua, say a few words of toast." Dahua suggested.
"good……"
"Ding Dong——" There was a bell ringing at the door.
Erhua put down the cup and went to open the door. Who was ringing the bell so late at night?
"Hey! Mr. Jin! Why are you here?"
The young man was wearing a black cashmere coat, and his suit was still neatly tailored. There were a few white spots on his meticulously crafted hair.
"I'm all alone, feeling very lonely. I was thinking about your family having a lively party, so I wanted to come and join in. I wonder if I'm disturbing you?"
Erhua glanced into the room and saw Chunhua drinking mutton soup slowly.
"Don't disturb, don't disturb, come in!"
After the two of them sat down, everyone raised their glasses again.
"A prosperous millennium, a peaceful home and a peaceful country!"
May your country and family be forever safe!
postscript
Thank you my dears for accompanying me here. My second book is about to be completed!
This is the story I have always wanted to write. Every time I type a word, it feels like opening a memory.
There is dullness, happiness, suffering and sadness.
Whenever I write about sad things, I almost cry.
Reality is warmer and more contagious, isn’t it?
I’m just afraid that my words are too crude and fail to capture the warmth and touching moments of the story.
In fact, everyone is a book.
I am happy to listen to others read books to me, and I am also grateful that I can remember the details of the books.
I hope you like this book of mine too.
Over the past few months, I have gained valuable readers. Thank you for your company along the way. It is you who kept me going until the end of the story.
Oh no, the story continues...
Dong Fan
October 2023
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